The Renaissance Neighborhood History Project

Mr. Ed Wright lived in the Renaissance Neighborhood in this house: He owned and operated the Ed Wright Tire Company on Fifteenth Street and Florence Place, just south of Route 66. According to a book called Portrait of Route 66: Images from the Curt Teich Postcard Archives , Mr. Wright was well known around town for his “homespun, zany” radio advertisements. His establishment fixed flats, installed new fuel storage tanks and pumps and sold gasoline and new tires.  Mr. Wright snapped a picture of his service station and had six thousand black-and-white postcards printed up in 1950. In later years, he and his wife, Mamie, opened a dude ranch south of Tulsa which served disadvantaged Tulsa youths. Mr. Wright was also instrumental in the founding of Snug Harbor on Fort Gibson Lake, where he boasted “the largest fishing dock in the world.” Photograph from Curt Teich Postcard Archives.      Photograph by A. Mueller, 10/26/2019. References...

Dear Readers, Chances are, if you are reading this, you love the Renaissance Neighborhood. Some of you have made your homes here for 10, 20, even 30 years. However, there aren’t many (if any) among us who can lay claim to the history that John M. Holderman has with our neighborhood. For starters, he was born in the back bedroom of the house his father built at 2534 E. Eleventh Street. He grew up in the neighborhood and clearly recalls many of the homes, the people and events of the 1940’s and 50’s. Although he no longer lives in the neighborhood, he continues to own and care for property here. We are lucky to be able to have captured some of his recollections for our history. Here is a bit of his story: ***** John M. Holderman’s father, John Warren Holderman, was born in Alabama. By the time he was twelve, in the late 1890’s, both his parents had died and he was on his own in the world. Armed with only a second-grade education, he made his way to St. Louis where he found...